Chapter 154: Chapter 154: Stimulation (1)

K and Kang-hoo decided to part ways and reconnect once they could obtain a new colorless talisman.

Currently, the “emission hypothesis” was the one with the highest probability.

Thus, neither Kang-hoo nor K felt the need to establish or test any other hypothesis.

Before leaving, Kang-hoo asked K to take his time and look into it slowly.

Rushing it wouldn’t solve the problem. Since it was a matter of waiting, Kang-hoo didn’t want to put unnecessary pressure on K.

Kang-hoo moved to the place where he was supposed to meet Park Dong-jae.

The entrance to the dungeon where Park Dong-jae had rented a license from the Myeongga Guild was in a completely unexpected location.

It was a storage room located in the basement of a six-story studio-type building around Cheongju Station.

A trash heap filled with all sorts of odds and ends that no one would care about.

Of course, he had heard that the basement storage had been intentionally set up that way.

Even if someone peeked inside, they wouldn’t think of entering further.

It would be ridiculous to station personnel at such a place, even if it had a dungeon entrance.

So instead, they seemed to have installed detailed CCTV and camouflaged the interior and exterior.

As soon as Park Dong-jae, who had arrived early and was waiting for Kang-hoo, saw him, he raised both arms enthusiastically to greet him.

“Hyung! I missed you!”

“Just raise your hand. No need to run over.”

“Hyung… Do you think I’m the type to like men?”

“The world is a rough place these days, so I wouldn’t find it strange.”

“Your reactions are always so boring.”

“I hear that a lot. So, you should adapt.”

“Se-hyeok hyung is more receptive. Too bad!”

“I am Shin Kang-hoo.”

If the author’s personality had been overlaid on him, he would certainly be a reaction-rich person.

But now, with Shin Kang-hoo’s personality deeply embedded, expressing intense emotions felt awkward.

It was a feeling he couldn’t endure due to the cringe.

Even if there were emotions swirling deep inside him, expressing them outwardly felt incredibly uncomfortable.

“Being a buff shuttle is tough. I’m completely worn out. My throat is all hoarse.”

As Park Dong-jae said, his voice was completely hoarse.

He must have been shouting the remaining buff time and composition list to his team members.

Park Dong-jae added.

“Playing with you is the most comfortable. I thought about you a lot.”

“It would be comfortable playing with me.”

“Exactly! So when the Myeongga Guild offered me the dungeon, I called you right away.”

“What about Jeon Se-hyeok or Se-yeong?”

“They’re not daily companions, this is solo play time. We’re not always together.”

Naturally, while scanning Park Dong-jae’s constellation information, Kang-hoo raised an eyebrow slightly.

Sensing the subtle change in expression, Park Dong-jae asked cautiously.

“Gasp, don’t tell me… Did you inform them?”

Park Dong-jae was off the mark.

Kang-hoo could see an additional constellation attached to Park Dong-jae.

It wasn’t there the last time they met, but it seemed to have been added as a main constellation this time.

Adding a constellation already.

He knew Park Dong-jae had great potential, but his growth curve was steeper than expected.

Compared to Kang-hoo, he fell short in relative terms, but it was rapid growth from a general hunter’s perspective.

【Worshiper of the Sacred Body】

【Actively assists all buffed targets with 0.5 health recovery per second.】

【If a buff is cast on an ally with a debuff, the debuff effect is reduced by 10%.】

‘Look at this guy, slyly stepping into the healer’s territory. A buffer assisting with health?’

Interesting news.

A constellation like the Worshiper of the Sacred Body is usually attached to healer-type hunters.

Yet, it was attached to Park Dong-jae, a buffer. It’s a constellation that wouldn’t be out of place even for a skilled healer.

Of course, constellations don’t approach based solely on the class of the contractor.

They meticulously review the contractor’s ability expansion, potential, and overall utility.

It seemed the Worshiper of the Sacred Body saw Park Dong-jae’s potential and climbed aboard before the main event.

‘If the original story were followed, Park Dong-jae would be trapped in the basement now. But the future has changed.’

Park Dong-jae, who came out into the world earlier than in the original story, was quickly unleashing his potential.

It could be considered the butterfly effect triggered by Kang-hoo himself.

With Park Dong-jae trusting and following him, it was a win-win situation in many ways.

“Why would I tell them? I don’t usually talk unless it’s the person involved.”

“Right… That sounds like you. You seem like the type who wouldn’t spill secrets even if parents asked.”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“Exactly right.”

“Oh! If you want, I can also try tracking Cha So-hyeok’s movements. Want some help?”

It was a welcome offer.

It wasn’t imposing on him; it was closer to receiving goodwill without any expectation of return.

Since Kang-hoo felt indebted to Park Dong-jae for saving his life, it seemed like an act he willingly did.

“Then please take care of that. The siblings are really troublesome. If they hadn’t chased me in the first place, none of this would have happened.”

“I really don’t get it.”

“Don’t even try to understand. It’ll just give you a headache. Why try to understand?”

“Because it’s annoying they’re bothering you.”

“If they block, make them move. If they try to kill, just kill them. It’s simple.”

“…”

Park Dong-jae was momentarily speechless, staring at Kang-hoo’s calm response.

He certainly seemed like a cold person without blood or tears.

It felt like if he became an enemy, he could strike without mercy at any time.

It was something he had felt since their first meeting.

Although Kang-hoo was at a lower level than himself, it never felt that way. He seemed like a senior.

It was as if he exuded an aura just by being still.

Even Park Dong-jae, who didn’t feel intimidated in front of Jeon Se-hyeok, was particularly cautious around Kang-hoo.

“Let’s do a final briefing once more before we go in. I’ve reviewed the contents, but just to be sure.”

“Sure. Shall we go in? We’re not entering the dungeon right away anyway.”

“Right. Since this is an open space, it’s better to have a secret passage.”

“Okay, let’s go!”

Before entering the dungeon, they conducted a final briefing.

Naturally, the topic of Park Dong-jae’s “Black Network” came up.

It’s an era of information warfare.

However, with so many forces emerging and the information they handle and derive being divided,

Information was abundant, but real information was scarce.

As all sorts of fake information and news spread, the amount of garbage information far exceeded the real information.

This was something Kang-hoo felt firsthand.

For example, 70% of the good deeds people knew about the Jeonghwa Guild were fabricated.

They were not a criminal organization but were disguised as one, claiming to eradicate them and achieve justice.

The death of a promising member within the Jeonghwa Guild was often disguised as a righteous death for unknown reasons.

The article about a hunter’s death that Kang-hoo saw on his smartphone before meeting Park Dong-jae was the same.

It said that Shin Hee-seong, one of the promising members of the Jeonghwa Guild, had died. He was one of the assassin prospects.

Something felt off.

The cause of death was said to be a fall while unexpectedly slipping off a cliff during dungeon exploration.

In other words, he missed his step and fell to his death.

Given the nature of the assassin class, they are highly sensitive to changes in the surrounding terrain.

So, it’s unlikely he would have moved recklessly near a cliff. It didn’t make sense not to notice it.

‘Could it be these guys?’

A strange thought suddenly came to mind.

Perhaps they found out that a hunter had recently acquired a hidden skill.

Then they identified the job group as an assassin and killed the expected candidate?

It was entirely possible.

The Thirteen Stars had a hunter obsessed with other people’s hidden skills. That would be Vincent Meyer.

In the original work, he was depicted as a hunter with demonic talent and had the lowest importance.

Now, with the identity of Jang Si-hwan completely overturned due to the collaborator ending,

It wouldn’t be surprising if Vincent Meyer committed murder for hidden skills.

Jang Si-hwan might turn a blind eye knowingly, or he might not know at all. There are many possible directions.

Anyway,

The Black Network was the best route to eliminate such fake information and obtain practical information.

Park Dong-jae said the investment he had made for a long time was finally paying off.

Moreover, he took the initiative to promise Kang-hoo that he wouldn’t hesitate to share information if needed.

From Kang-hoo’s standpoint, receiving such benefits was a great help and support.

Park Dong-jae’s Black Network.

Kang-hoo believed it could fill the gap in his information warfare.

For various reasons, it became clear why he couldn’t let go of Park Dong-jae.

To keep him properly, it seemed more important to impress him in this dungeon raid.

After finishing the briefing and conversation,

They passed through the passage and officially entered the dungeon, where Kang-hoo immediately finished the preliminary work.

【Selfish Indulgence】

【Designate Buff Skill: Instinct of Sprint】

It was a task using the buff enhancement skill obtained from Roche.

The buff designated for a 300% enhancement was Park Dong-jae’s acceleration buff skill, “Instinct of Sprint.”

Since it was done immediately, he thought there would be no change in his body.

“Hmm?”

Park Dong-jae had already applied all the buffs he could. It happened in the blink of an eye.

It was impossible unless buffing without leaving buff time gaps was a habit.

In non-combat situations, many buffers save their buff skills to conserve mana.

“Buff setting complete.”

“That was quick.”

“I’m Park Dong-jae, hyung.”

“Good.”

Kang-hoo showed a thumbs up.

He was both looking forward to it and worried.

With Selfish Indulgence applied to the acceleration buff, the efficiency would explode to more than triple.

To feel the speed and see the effect, a prerequisite must be met.

One must be fully adapted to the accelerated state with body, eyes, and senses.

If he couldn’t create movements and variables to maximize the effect with the accelerated body?

He would merely be flailing around uselessly.

He could make fatal mistakes amidst the mixed-up vision and sensory errors from excessive acceleration.

As a test, Kang-hoo decided to lightly leap with acceleration.

It’s a basic movement.

In the next moment,

“Huht… Ugh!”

A groan escaped Kang-hoo’s mouth as he tried to lift his body lightly by raising his heels.

His body, caught in faster acceleration than expected, was springing out like a coil.

The insane acceleration was enough to distort his face, pressed against the air pressure, into a squashed bun.

Selfish Indulgence!

The effect was certain.